Wasteland
by Muttson
Summary: A reboot of a previous story I was working on. Shortly after the Aparoid Invasion, the team is called to Zoness for an unusual mission... Consider this story to take place instead of Command rather than before it. That game had a terrible story from start to finish in my opinion.
1. Chapter 1

The Great Fox drifted slowly in orbit above Corneria, its three massive plasma engines dormant. Four small ships approached the vessel and entered the docking bay. The team had returned.

"Hey Peppy, we're back." Slippy announced as he entered the bridge with Falco behind him.

"Took you guys long enough." The old rabbit replied. He pushed his glasses up his nose and turned from the console. "Not that I was doing too much."

"What, you taking a nap, old-timer?" Falco asked, taking a seat and putting his feet up on the console. "Can't say I blame you. I nearly fell asleep myself during Pepper's speech."

"He never could resist that, could he?" Peppy chuckled. "It was supposed to just be a parade."

"Yeah, well, you know the general." Slippy spoke up, fiddling with some gadget. "Kept talking about protecting the peace and how lucky we were to have defeated the Aparoids."

"Problem with peace is we don't get paid." Falco commented.

"Yeah, but at least it gives me a chance to work on the Arwings." Slippy countered.

"You gonna build something to fly them for you?" Falco needled.

Krystal entered the bridge as they began squabbling. "Boys..." She started.

"Ahh, forget it. Those two were made to fight." Fox grinned, walking in behind her. "At least it keeps things interesting."

"Probability of preventing an altercation: 12% and falling." ROB spoke up from the helm.

"Thanks ROB." Fox rolled his eyes slightly. "See? Not much you can do about those two. Even the computer agrees."

"Well, at least Falco seems to be enjoying himself." Krystal looked over at the bird, who was grinning as Slippy defended his position.

"Yeah, they'll sort it out. If not, Peppy can handle them. Right?" He looked at the old member of the team.

"Hmm? Whazzat?" Peppy looked up from where he had been dozing off. "Yeah, sure. Whatever you say, Fox."

 **Sector X**

 **A small base hidden amongst the wreckage of a space station**

"Dammit! There's nothing good here." Wolf slammed his fist on the desk in frustration. "Just little jobs for nothing more than pocket change."

"That bad, huh?" Leon grumbled. "I'm surprised there aren't too many opportunities for profit while Corneria gets back on their feet."

"Almost makes me miss working for Andross. Guy was a scumbag, but at least he payed well. Consistent, too" Wolf switched to the second page of available contracts. "Andrew and Pigma I could do without, though."

"Lucky you found me, then." Panther purred, sipping at his tea. "I'm far better company than those losers."

"Shut up, Panther." Wolf scanned the page. "We may just need to take a smuggling job in the meantime. Our Wolfens are in desperate need of repairs after that business with the Aparoids." His scowl deepened. "You'd think the Cornerian government might thank us for our contribution. Guess playing the hero doesn't do us any good."

"Leave that to Star Fox." Leon sneered. "They can lick General Pepper's boots all they want."

A small smile formed on Wolf's face. "Ahh, here we go. I think I found something."

"Good pay?" Panther asked.

"Oh, you'd better believe it." Wolf replied. "Get to your ships. We're headed for Zoness."


	2. Chapter 2

**Corneria**

 **Several weeks later**

 **Aboard the Great Fox, currently in orbit**

Krystal sat in her room, eyes closed. Her consciousness was free to wander the Lylat System. Below her, the minds of everyone on Corneria shone like a beacon. She willed her thoughts to extend further.

On Katina, a military exercise was taking place. She could sense the discipline and focus of the soldiers stationed there. The marine life on Aquas was peaceful. A construction satellite near Sector Y caught her attention for a moment. There were many people there, all working diligently. There was some sort of dispute on Sauria, but it seemed to be only a trivial argument between the Cloudrunners and Earthwalkers.

She breathed deeply and let her mind return. Things seemed to be stable, at least for the most part. Opening her eyes, she stood up and stretched. A knock came at the door.

"Hey, uh, Krystal?" It was Fox. "Are you in there?"

Krystal smiled to herself. He seemed a little nervous, which was endearing. The pilot had faced many horrors thrown at him without blinking, from maniacal scientists to xenophobic monstrosities, but talking to her could get his tail in a twist.

"Yes, Fox, come in." She said.

The door slid open to reveal the team leader trying rather unsuccessfully to look casual. "Hey." He greeted.

Krystal simply raised an eyebrow and smiled, amused. "What is it?"

"Uh." A note of panic flashed in his eyes as he realized he hadn't thought of any particular reason to talk to her. "There's this... I mean, we've got..."

"Yes?" She was enjoying herself.

"What I mean is..." He trailed off. "Um. I wanted to, uh, get your opinion on some potential contracts."

"Is that so?" She smiled at him. "Lead the way, then."

Although Fox hadn't thought of it until the moment it came out of his mouth, it was true. The list of jobs was pretty small, and while they were still living well off the payment from the Aparoid Invasion, it wouldn't last forever. A lot had already been spent to cover the cost of an entirely new Great Fox, since the previous ship had been destroyed. Besides, the team needed something to do.

"Anything in particular catch your eye?" Krystal asked him as they headed to the bridge together.

 _You_ , he thought. Aloud, he said, "A few, I guess. Most of these are bodyguard service or escort missions. Hardly worth the time. There are plenty of others who can handle those. But some are different."

"Different how?" The telepath asked.

"Well, they're vague. Not too much information given. But the pay is high, and I think it's worth a look."

"Do you think they're...legal?"

Fox shrugged. "That's what I wanted to ask you about. No matter how good the pay is, I'm not going to take on a job I don't like."

"Mmm." Krystal agreed.

They entered the bridge together. Peppy looked up from a book he was reading. "There you are, Fox. Finally decided to look at our potential contracts?"

"I already have. I just found Krystal for a second opinion." Fox pulled up the holographic display. Peppy raised his eyebrows, amused. Fox shot him a glare. "She's got a good instinct for this." He defended himself. He opened the contract list and pointed out the jobs that had caught his eye.

"I don't like the looks of that one." Krystal said, indicating the first on the list. "Nor do I like the next two. But this one seems to be legitimate." She pointed to the fourth.

"You barely even read it! How can you tell?"

"I'm a telepath, Fox. Keep that in mind." Krystal smiled.

"But that works through the computer?" Fox asked, amazed.

Krystal shrugged. "To an extent. It's harder to read, but the mental effort put into creating the listing leaves a sort of trail that I can pick up on. It's not through the computer, necessarily, but I can get a feel for the intent of the person who wrote it."

Fox shook his head. "You are really something special." He said with wonder. "So, are you ready to go to..." He checked the description again. "Are you sure this is the best bet?"

"Positive. Why?"

"Zoness. It's... a mess." He sighed. "Andross turned the place into a radioactive wasteland during the war. The Venomian army took the planet and wasted no time building refineries and supply depots. We took out a majority of what he had built, but the damage had been done. They had dumped toxic waste into the oceans at an alarming rate, and the entire planet was engulfed in radiation."

"That sounds awful."

"It was. It's been nearly ten years and relief efforts are still under way." Fox folded his arms and furrowed his brow. "In fact, that's who put out this listing. What would they want with mercenaries?"

"Maybe they need defending from some sort of threat?" Peppy spoke up. "You do recall all of the mutated creatures we encountered."

"I don't think so. After so long, I would think that if it were a problem, it would have come up and been solved by now." Fox thought for a moment before shrugging. "I suppose we'll just need to wait and see. ROB, set a course for Zoness. I'll send a reply and let the team know we have a job."

The three plasma engines roared to life and the Great Fox began its journey.


	3. Chapter 3

**Zoness**

 **Aboard the Great Fox, currently in orbit**

The team stood on the bridge and looked out at the approaching planet. Zoness' green hue had been replaced with a cool, dark blue shade interspersed with patches of brown.

"Looks like they've done a lot in the past ten years," Fox observed. "In fact, looks like they're nearly done."

"Wasn't like this two years ago." Falco commented, arms folded as he observed the planet. Fox glanced sideways at the bird. Falco noticed and shrugged. "I passed by at one point while flying solo. It was still glowing then."

"So how did they make so much progress so quickly?" Slippy asked.

"A good question. I'm sure we'll get a chance to ask them." Peppy responded.

"Incoming message." ROB spoke up. "Sender is located on Zoness. Designation: Base Echo."

"Bring it on screen, ROB." Fox directed. The communications display flickered to life and a nervous, haggard-looking bulldog appeared. His face lit up as he saw the team.

"It is an honor to be meeting all of you, Star Fox. My name is Colin Davis. I am the leader of the relief efforts here on Zoness." He said with some pride. "I am so glad that you were able to come to our aid."

"Well, we're glad to be of assistance." Fox replied. "So what exactly is it you need our help with?"

At this, Colin's face lost all traces of cheerfulness and fell back into the tired state the team had seen when he first appeared on the monitor. "One of our bases, base Delta, was lost."

"What? Who took it, and what would they want with a cleanup crew's base?" Falco asked.

"No, it wasn't captured, it was quite literally lost. Vanished off the planet. Just... gone." Colin replied. "One of our supply ships was coming in for a delivery there, but when they arrived at the location of the base, the island it was situated on was barren. They were low on fuel and had to land there, and we had to send another ship to pick them up. I was on that second ship, and I couldn't believe what I saw. There was simply no trace."

"Surely you were in contact with them?" Peppy asked, stroking his chin thoughtfully.

"That's what's even crazier. We had been in communication with the base less than an hour before the ship arrived. They were there... and then they weren't." Colin shook his head wearily. "It's just baffling. I do have some more details, and a few more people you should talk to, but it may be best we do that face to face. I've transmitted the coordinates of base Echo to you. There is a large clear area nearby that the Great Fox can land in. I'll see you then. And once again, I must say it is an honor." Colin nodded to the team and the transmission ended.

Peppy turned to face everyone. "Well, what do you all think about this?"

"I'm not sure." Fox said. "This is... well, we're usually fighters, not investigators. But..." He shrugged.

"I think we should do it!" Slippy exclaimed. "It's fascinating. An entire base of operations, vanished within an hour? I can't imagine passing this up!"

"I'd prefer flying and blasting bad guys." Falco put forth. "But it does seem like they need our help."

"From what I could read, Colin is genuinely confused and worried. I don't sense any malice." Krystal closed her eyes. "However, I do feel that he's holding something back."

"We can address it later." Fox said. "It seems like we all agree. We're taking on this mission."

 **Base Echo**

 **Moments after the end of the transmission**

Colin sighed heavily and rubbed his temples. It was all too much. On one hand, the Star Fox team was here! The heroes who had saved the Lylat System time and time again! But on the other hand, the catastrophic events that had led up to their arrival were weighing heavily on him. All the other teams that he had called in; the lone mutt, the two felines, even a desperate call off the record to the infamous Star Wolf team had all ended poorly. All six pilots had simply vanished while investigating, similarly to the base. He had neglected to tell Star Fox of these failed attempts, but should he? It may scare them away, but... was it the right thing to do? Was there blood on his hands? Would there be more?

He simply didn't know.


	4. Chapter 4

**Just outside of Base Echo**

The Great Fox descended slowly, coming to a landing upon the flat island next to Base Echo. A ramp extended from the bottom of the ship and the team stepped out, taking a good look at their surroundings. A warm breeze blew gently across the ocean, carrying a slightly sharp odor with it. Waves crashed against the shore in the distance, creating a gentle rhythm. The ground was hard packed dirt with only a few scraggly bushes clinging on to life. They started for the entrance to the base.

"It seems like everything has taken a turn for the better," Peppy commented. "It looks nearly like it did when I took Vivian here all those years ago. Of course, that was on a beach, not an island like this one." He stated, looking out across the ocean with a hint of sadness in his eyes.

"It's still pretty hazy," Slippy pointed out. "The air isn't quite clear."

"But the oceans themselves... how did they take care of that?" Fox asked. "You remember how they were before."

They reached the door of the base and it slid open, revealing Colin standing there. "Welcome to Base Echo, Star Fox!" He exclaimed, spreading his arms wide. "We have a lot to go over, so please come inside." The bulldog turned and headed into the building, gesturing for the team to follow. "I'm sure you have many questions, and I'll try to answer everything that I can." He set off at a brisk pace.

"Where are we headed?" Fox asked, falling into step behind him.

"Just a conference hall. There's someone else who we'll need to talk to. Possum by the name of Jared. He's a scientist, responsible for the technology enabling us to clean up this planet so effectively." He turned a corner. "He's a bit scatterbrained, however."

"Sounds like someone we know." Falco quipped, nudging Slippy teasingly. The frog ignored him.

"Yes, I've heard that you're quite a genius, Slippy." Colin stated, oblivious to Falco's teasing intentions. "I'm sure the pair of you will have a lot to discuss."

They entered a large room. Workers wearing protective gear glanced at them, many staring for a little while before returning to their work.

Colin noticed the stares. "Pardon any looks you may receive. After all, you five are quite famous. The way you defeated Andross, and saved us from the Aparoids... well, they're simply excited that you're here."

Fox glanced at Krystal. He had warned her to keep her sixth sense on alert for any malicious intent. He saw a slightly amused expression on her face. She noticed his questioning look and tapped her wrist, indicating she would tell him later.

Colin stopped in front of a door. "Here we are," he said, opening it and stepping inside. The room was simply furnished with several seats around a large table. A possum wearing a wrinkled lab coat sat at one of the chairs, peering at a pile of documents through crooked glasses. He looked up as the team entered, standing hastily and knocking several papers off the table.

"Hello," he greeted the team. "I'm Jared." He paused, shifting awkwardly. "I, uh, I'm the scientist who has been put in charge of studying the effects of Andross' dumping on Zoness as well as being tasked with finding ways to reverse it."

"It seems you've done that very well," Peppy told him. "The planet is looking good. If I may ask, how did you achieve that?"

"Ah, yes. I am actually incredibly proud of this." He began to shuffle through the papers remaining on the table. "I developed a chemical compound that can effectively solidify the toxic waste." He found what he was looking for and passed it to the team. Fox glanced at the complex diagram and almost immediately handed it to Slippy. "By sampling some of the water, I was able to determine what a majority of the pollutants were. Using that, I synthesized a solution that greatly alters the freezing point of these chemicals so that they freeze at high temperatures. It doesn't effect the water, however, so the waste is separated and solidified."

"Incredible." Slippy studied the document closely. "My area of expertise is more in the mechanical fields, but I do know a thing or two about chemistry."

Colin stepped forward. "So that is how we have been cleaning the waters of Zoness. It wasn't developed until about a year and a half ago, but the progress we have made since then has been uncanny."

"What do you do with this solidified waste?" Fox asked. "Surely it takes up a lot of space."

"Several storage locations have been established, but we're working on commissioning a satellite to store it until we figure out how to dispose of it for good."

"When it is created, it is fairly large. It has to have a low density, or else it will sink." Jared added. "But it's also easy to compact. We basically extract it, collect it, and then compress and store it."

"This is all very impressive, but I think we should discuss the missing base." Falco butted in.

"Quite right." Colin noted. He took a seat. "The reason that this may be relevant is that the waste gives off some radiation. Now, all of Zoness has some degree of low level radiation. It's minimal, not enough to cause any adverse reactions, but it's there nonetheless. However, when we compress the toxic waste, the concentration of chemicals emits a moderately high level of radioactivity. We believe this may have had some sort of part in the disappearance of Base Delta, as there was a particularly large warehouse there. Of course, all necessary precautions were taken when dealing with and storing the waste, but it was the largest and most full warehouse out of them all. I can't help but feel that it may have been due at least in part to the waste."

"From what we know about radiation, it shouldn't cause things like that." Slippy pointed out.

Jared nodded. "I said the same thing initially. But what other explanation is there? It's the best we have to go off of, at least at the moment."

"That's all I have to tell you for now," Colin said. "I'll have someone show you around the base. It's not too complicated, mainly serves as living quarters." He stood up. "Once again, thank you so much for coming out here. Your assistance means the world to us." With that he left the room.

 **Elsewhere**

Wolf stirred and groaned heavily. His head was throbbing. _What happened_ , he wondered to himself. He had no recollection of any recent events.

Wolf opened his eyes wearily. The first thing he noticed was the familiar set of controls in front of him. So he was in the cockpit of his Wolfen. Good. At least his ship was safe.

He then shifted his gaze upward. There was nothing to see outside the cockpit. Just an endless expanse of dim grey light.

"The hell...?" He muttered to himself, still groggy. He looked at the radar. It wasn't picking up anything. The communications line was on, but completely silent. He pushed forward on the control sticks, but nothing happened. It seemed the engine was dead. With a growl of frustration he sat back and glared out the cockpit. Nothing to do but wait, it seemed.

The Wolfen continued to drift.


	5. Chapter 5

**Zoness**

 **Former location of Base Delta**

The island sat silently, a gentle breeze coming off the ocean kicking up a little dust. Solar hung low in the sky, its light slowly fading. The Star Fox team's four Arwings flew overhead in tight formation.

"I'm not picking up on any radiation levels." Slippy said. "We should be safe to land and investigate on foot."

"Good to know. Thanks Slippy." Fox responded. "Let's hurry this up. We're running low on daylight."

The ships separated and turned around, each one landing around where the base had been. The team all opened their cockpits and hopped out of their Arwings. They met in the center of the ships.

"So this is it?" Slippy asked. "Colin was right. There really isn't anything here."

"What, you thought he was lying to us?" Falco asked. "That'd be a pretty expensive prank to pull. They're shelling out a lotta cash for us to do this."

"I didn't mean that. I just meant that it's hard to imagine."

"Don't start, you two." Fox warned them. "We don't have very long." He pulled out a holographic display and switched it on. An aerial view of the base from when it was still there appeared. "Okay, where we are now is almost directly in the center of the base."

"Fox?" Krystal asked. "About how far did the base extend from where we are?"

"Quite a ways. It was bigger than Base Echo. Here." He passed her the display. "Why do you ask?"

Krystal took the display and frowned slightly. She looked up for a moment, then back at the display. "How long ago did he say the base vanished?"

"Jared mentioned that it was around a month ago."

"Well, that bush over there must have grown very quickly." She pointed to a large scraggly bush near Falco's Arwing. "It would have been covered by the base. And I don't think it would have grown to this size in a short amount of time."

The team headed over to the bush. Fox knelt down to inspect it closer. It had few leaves, but the stems themselves were thick and strong. "No way this grew within a month." Fox proclaimed and stood back up.

"So...what does this mean?" Slippy asked.

"Well, there are a few possibilities. Either we're being lied to, we're in the wrong spot, which can't be as the coordinates are right and the coastline is the same, this bush grew incredibly quickly, it was transplanted, or... something else entirely, I guess." Fox took a deep breath. "Well, Solar has almost set. Should we take our leave? I don't think we'll be getting any more information from here tonight."

"Yeah. I'm gettin' kind of cold out here." Falco folded his arms. "Wish we could have gotten out here sooner."

The four returned to their Arwings and took off, beginning their flight back to Base Echo.

"Krystal?" Fox asked over the communications line.

"Yes Fox?"

"What was so funny earlier? When Colin was bringing us to meet Jared. I saw you smiling a bit."

"Oh, right." Krystal recalled. "I was picking up on a lot of emotion from Colin as he talked about the team's accomplishments. I believe he has more interest in us than your ordinary person. Call him a fan, I suppose. It's quite flattering, actually."

"Well, we did kinda save the entire Lylat System a few times." Falco said. "I guess we do deserve it."

The four flew in silence for a while, skimming the waves of the planet.

"Do you think the crew of Base Delta are okay?" Slippy asked, breaking the silence.

"I don't know." Fox replied grimly. "And to be blunt, I wouldn't count on it." He sighed. "This sort of thing doesn't really instill confidence. An entire base vanishing? Something catastrophic had to have happened."

The rest of the flight passed without any further comment.

 **Later that night**

 **Aboard the Great Fox**

 **Stationed outside Base Echo**

Fox hesitated. He was nervous again. He never felt this way when addressing Krystal amongst the rest of the team. What was up with that? He shook his head and tried to summon his courage. Lifting his hand, he prepared to knock on her door. Before he could do so, the door opened and Krystal jumped back slightly, startled.

"Fox? What are you doing here?" She asked, regaining her composure. "Do you need something?"

"I, um, sort of." He responded. "I just wanted to talk to you about... things..."

"Oh, well, I was about to look for you." She responded. "I also have some things I'd like to talk about." She stepped back into her room. "Here, join me."

"Oh, uh, okay," Fox replied, stepping inside. "Umm, what did you want to talk about?"

"Well, I think it may be best to let you start." Krystal replied. She sat down in her bed and motioned for Fox to sit beside her.

He felt his face heat up as he took a seat beside her. "I just... I guess I wanted to know more about your abilities. I mean, I know the basics- it's not mind reading, it's more about thought patterns and emotions, all that stuff- but I want to know what exactly it feels like." He was starting to feel more relaxed.

"Well, think of it like this. Say you wanted to pick something up. You'd reach out for it and grab it, correct?" She picked up her blaster from beside her bed to illustrate the point. "It's a lot like that. I reach out with my mind and pick up on others thoughts."

"Hmm. I guess that makes sense." Fox said. "But what about earlier? When you were looking for any ill intent from many people."

"Go back to wanting to pick something up, but now imagine that you are blindfolded. What do you do?" Krystal closed her eyes and set the blaster back down. "You feel around for it, using your sense of touch to determine what it is you've come in contact with." She grabbed her blaster. "I've held the blaster before. I know how it feels in my hands. So I can identify it by touch." She opened her eyes and looked at Fox. "See what I mean?"

"I think so. And how does it feel to pick up on these thoughts and feelings? How do you identify them?"

"Simple, really. I experience what the other person does. I can distinguish it from my own thoughts, however, so it's like a second layer upon which I can feel the other person's mind."

The two sat in silence for a moment. "Anything else you want to know, Fox?" Krystal asked.

He shook his head. "No, that covers it pretty well. What was it you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just..." She hesitated. "Colin is holding something back. I'm sure of it. But like I said, he has no malicious intent, and he really likes us." She shook her head. "Something is bothering him. He's worried about us, and it makes me think he's aware of a threat that he hasn't disclosed."

"Hmm." Fox said thoughtfully. "Do you think there's anything to gain from confronting him about it?"

"I don't think so." Krystal replied. "I think we should continue on as if nothing is wrong, but stay cautious."

Fox nodded in agreement. "My thoughts as well." He stood up. "Well, I suppose there's not much else to discuss. We should get some sleep. I'd like to get a fairly early start tomorrow to discuss the presence of the bush with Colin and Jared."

"Alright." Krystal smiled. "Good night, Fox."

"Good night, Krystal."


	6. Chapter 6

**The Next Morning**

 **Base Echo Mess Hall**

"This breakfast is better than I was expecting." Slippy said happily, returning from the buffet line with a second portion.

"I've definitely had worse." Falco commented as he bit into his toast.

"So what is our plan today, team?" Peppy asked. "I was thinking I'd look at the records of Base Delta's latest activity. See if anything stands out." He took a bite of his breakfast.

"I'd like to take another look at the site of Base Delta," Slippy stated. "I didn't have much time to scan things the other night."

"I think we'll all go." Fox said. "I don't see much we can do around here that Peppy can't handle. Besides, there's still the possibility of attack from the mutated creatures."

"We didn't see any yesterday." Falco pointed out.

"It may be that they were agitated due to all the action going on during the war," Slippy theorized. "It's likely that they've calmed down since then."

"Still, it never hurts to be cautious." Peppy advised. "Remember, we have absolutely no idea what we're dealing with here."

"Does anyone have any other suggestions? I'd like to head out as soon as possible." Fox looked around. Nobody said anything. "Okay. Bring any scanners you may need, Slippy." We'll be checking everything more thoroughly today. Everyone bring your blaster too. Better safe than sorry."

"About that." Slippy coughed nervously. "I may have...misplaced mine."

"What? Slip, why didn't you say so?"

"I just realized this morning." The frog defended himself. "I was working on it just last night. I was tinkering with the alignment of the conductor rods, which I may have messed up slightly when upgrading the capacitor." He shrugged. "Anyway, I'm pretty certain I left it on my workbench. But it wasn't there this morning."

"Unbelievable." Falco muttered. "You sure you left it there?"

"Almost positive. I hadn't put the casing back on, and I wouldn't have taken it anywhere else without doing so."

"We'll find it." Fox assured him, hoping to shut down any possible argument between the frog and the bird before it could start. "In the meantime, you'll probably be fine without it as long as you stick with someone who has theirs."

"I don't anticipate we'll be far from one another today." Krystal put forth. "It shouldn't be a problem."

"I'm sorry, Fox." Slippy said. "I'll be more careful about these things in the future."

 **Former location of Base Delta**

The four Arwings landed and the pilots got out, meeting in the center once again.

"Alright, team. I want you all to look for anything out of the ordinary. Anything at all, no matter how trivial it may be." Fox directed them. "Falco, check for any traces of debris or other significant items. Slippy, do what you need to with all that gear you brought."

"Got it." Falco said, immediately beginning to wander off, scanning the area.

"I'll start running some scans." Slippy said, hurrying back to his Arwing to grab his equipment.

"Okay." Fox said. "Krystal, I thought about this after our talk last night. You could pick up on some thought patterns from Star Wolf when we were tracking Pigma that were several hours old. Do you think you could do the same now? I know it's been much longer, but..."

"I don't know." She replied. "I've never tried to trace residual thoughts this far back. If many people all experienced a similar feeling at the same time, I may be able to pick up on it after all this time. But I'll need to focus. Give me a little while to meditate and I'll let you know if I sense anything." She sat down and closed her eyes, breathing deeply.

Fox watched her for a moment before pulling himself away and walking a short distance. He glanced over at Falco. The bird was kneeling in the dirt looking closely at something. Perhaps he had found some remnant of the base? He looked away and began his own search. If it was important, Falco would bring it up.

He headed towards the bush they had investigated the other day. It seemed so innocuous, but held so much mystery. Strange how that could be, he mused, that something as simple as a bush could raise so many questions. He switched on his communications system and called the Great Fox.

"Hello Fox. What is your request?" ROB answered.

"Hey ROB, is Peppy there?" He asked. "I'd like him to check up on something."

"Negative. Peppy is currently at Base Delta." The robot intoned. "Shall I call him?"

"No, don't worry about it. Just ask him to check what kind of bush this is when he gets back." Fox took a picture on a handheld device and sent it. "Specifically how fast it grows."

"Affirmative."

"Thanks, ROB." Fox switched off the communications device and stood up. It would beep if anyone needed to contact him. At least now they'd get a definitive answer as to whether or not the bush could have grown in that time span.

"Hey Fox?" Slippy called to him.

"What is it, Slippy?" He asked, standing up and heading towards him.

"There's something wrong here, and I'm an idiot for not realizing sooner." Slippy said, fiddling with a dial on one of his many scanners. "There's no trace of radiation."

"So... isn't that a good thing?" Fox asked.

"Well, yes, but it's different from the rest of the planet." Slippy explained. "I believe Colin may have mentioned it the other night. The entire planet has low level background radiation. It's minimal, yet still detectable by machinery. But there isn't anything here."

"And this is where a lot of the waste was stored, which also gave off radiation..." Fox mused. "Would that stick around for a while?"

"Probably. It depends how well it was contained, but some leakage is nearly inevitable. So for this area to have no radiation at all..." he shrugged. "I can't explain it. It's as if whatever made the base vanish also got rid of the radiation."

"Do you think that's possible?"

"It could be." Slippy replied thoughtfully. "I'd like to speak to Jared about this, and maybe contact my father as well."

Falco walked up to the two of them as they spoke. "Hey, I found something a little bit weird." He said. "Might be nothing. But it's worth a look." He held out his hand. Resting in his palm was an intricately carved stone. "This thing is definitely not a natural occurrence. And it seems to be the only manmade object left here."

"Hmm." Fox examined the stone. It was slightly weathered, but a symmetrical pattern was clearly engraved on it. "Seems old. I doubt it was in any way part of Base Delta."

"So whaddaya think? Important or nah?" Falco shrugged. "I'm no detective. It's just somethin' that stood out to me."

"It could be. Keep it for now. Let's show it to Jared and Peppy, maybe check up on the symbols." Fox told him. Falco nodded and slipped the stone into his pocket. "I'm not really sure what else to do here," Fox said. "Tell you what. You and Slippy can head back to the base if you'd like. Show the people there what you've found, get their opinions, all that. I'm going to wait for Krystal and return later."

"Alright. See you back at Base Echo." Slippy responded, finishing up his scans.

"Got it, Fox." Falco said with a wink.

"What was that for?"

"What?" The bird replied innocently.

"The wink. Why did you wink?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Falco said, winking again. "I'll just head out then, and leave the two of you to do whatever."

"Wh-what? No, I- it takes time to- she's meditating- shut up." Fox felt his face burning. "I just want to make sure nobody has to fly back alone, just in case."

"Yeah, okay. Have fun." Falco turned and headed to his Arwing. Slippy snickered a little as he packed up his equipment.

Fox made his way over to the coastline and stared out over the sea. He could definitely see why so many people had come here on vacation before the war. Despite the hazy air, it was quite beautiful. He sat down to think.

There really was no logical explanation. Base Delta had vanished so quickly, and left absolutely no trace of its presence. There was nothing that could simply annihilate things that quickly.

Unless...

Warp gate technology. Re-Blocks. Using that, it was possible to transport materials across the Lylat System instantaneously. Could it be that the base wasn't destroyed, but rather transported? It would explain the lack of debris. But how? Warp gates requires whatever was being transported to pass through it. The base couldn't move. All the same, it felt like the most logical possibility. He switched his communications line on.

"Hey Slippy," he said. "I had an idea. Is it possible that the base was moved via some form of teleportation? Warp gate, transfer device, something like that?"

"Well, a transfer device would have to be built into the base itself. A warp gate wouldn't make sense either, as it would have to somehow be lowered on top of the base. But it's a good theory. I'll bring it up to Jared once we get back."

"Thanks, Slip." Fox switched the communications line off again. He heard footsteps behind him. Turning, he saw Krystal approaching.

"Hello, she said, taking a seat beside him and looking out over the sea. "It sure is beautiful, isn't it?"

"I was thinking the same thing." Fox replied. "So what did you come up with?"

"Nothing." Krystal shook her head. "Either the thought patterns weren't strong enough or I couldn't reach back that far. I don't know which is the case."

"That's okay. We have a few other possible leads." He told her about the stone, the lack of radiation, and his theory about teleportation.

"Wait a minute, Fox." Krystal said. "There are more forms of teleportation than just technology. Remember the Warpstone?"

"You're right," Fox said. "Sauria was filled with warp points. Do you think...?"

"It's a strong possibility. Let's head back to Base Echo and tell the others along the way." Krystal stood up. "I think we may have solved this mystery."


	7. Chapter 7

**Base Echo**

Slippy and Falco flew in low over the water, the wind from their Arwings kicking up a fine mist behind them. The four G-diffusers on each ship flared to life as they applied the brakes, slowing to a stop and landing by the Great Fox. The two pilots got out and headed towards the entrance of Base Echo. Colin was standing outside the door to greet them.

"Welcome back." He said, then stopped. "Where are the other two?" Fear flashed in his eyes. "Are they okay?"

"They're fine. They just sent us ahead, that's all." Slippy reassured him.

"Yeah, Krystal was doing some sort of telepathic thing." Falco added.

Colin relaxed a bit, but was still clearly tense. "That's a relief. But telepathy... it's true that she can do that?" He asked. "I heard about it, but I didn't know if it were true."

"Her abilities have helped us more than once in the past." Slippy stated. "It's very impressive."

"I'll bet." Colin said as they headed into the base. "How..." he searched for the best word. "...exact is it?"

"Well, she can't read minds. It's more like thought patterns and emotions." Slippy explained. He shot a glance at Falco. Colin was behaving somewhat strangely, he thought. It was kind of suspicious, like he was worried about more than just the safety of the team. "I'd like to meet with Jared. There are quite a few things I'd like to discuss."

"Yes, of course. I'll see what he's up to. He has been working hard on something to help improve the air quality now that the water is in much better shape." Colin led them back to the conference room they had met in before. "I'll go find him. You can wait here if you'd like. I shouldn't be too long." He left in a hurry.

"Somethin' ain't right here." Falco leaned against the wall and folded his arms.

"You said it." Slippy replied. "I don't know what it is, but Colin's behavior feels untrustworthy." He scratched his head. "I don't know though."

"You think maybe Krystal was wrong?" Falco asked. "He may be another Captain Shears."

Slippy shook his head. "I doubt it. There doesn't seem to be anything for him to gain here."

"Hmm." Falco activated his communicator. "Yo Fox, you there?"

"What's up, Falco?" Fox replied.

"Where are you guys right now?" The bird asked.

"We're on our way back now. Shouldn't take too long." Fox told him.

"Colin has been acting a bit strange." Falco said. "I don't know what to make of it."

"Huh. How strange are we talking?"

"Just nervous, almost paranoid." He shrugged. "I dunno. Nothing too crazy, I guess."

"I can try to get a read on him when I return," Krystal offered.

"That should suffice. Don't worry about it too much for now. Krystal and I may have figured out how the base disappeared."

"Yeah? How's that?" Slippy asked, having turned his communicator on as well.

"Remember how I asked about some form of teleportation? Well, there's always the more mysterious methods. Sauria is covered in warp points."

"Are you saying that Zoness has something like that?" Slippy asked. "Sauria has all that internal magic energy, though. Zoness, I'm not so sure."

"It's the best lead we have. And who's to say there isn't some form of teleportation we don't know about yet?" Fox pointed out. "We'll discuss this further once we arrive. We're beginning our final approach now."

"See you soon, then. We're in the conference room- you remember the one, right?" Falco asked.

"Yeah. See you there. Fox out."

Falco turned his communicator off. "I guess he's right. Nothing we can really do about it."

"I wonder where Peppy is?" Slippy wondered. "He said he was going to review the activity logs for Base Delta. We should have him in the meeting too."

"I don't think he has his communicator with him either." Falco said. "Should one of us look for him?"

"I'll go. Let me know if Colin gets back." Slippy headed out the door.

"Will do." Falco reached into his pocket and pulled out the stone. He studied the patterns carved in them. They were mostly concentric squares, with small circles in the center. Upon closer inspection, it appeared there was a tiny jade-colored stone inset in the center of each circle. Something about it was vaguely familiar, but he couldn't place it. Where had he seen that pattern before? He sighed and placed the stone on the table. Nothing to do now but wait.

Several minutes passed before Slippy and Peppy showed up, followed closely by Fox and Krystal.

"Hey." Falco greeted them casually.

"Is Colin still gone?" Slippy asked. "I wonder what's taking him so long."

"Just a slight mishap in the lab." Jared announced as he strode into the room, Colin behind him. His hair was a mess and there was a slight odor of singed fur. "There was an error in my diagrams. Small adverse chemical reaction, a bit of a fire, but nothing too concerning." He straightened his crooked glasses. "It's been taken care of." He assured them, taking a seat. The others followed suit.

"So what have you discovered?" Colin asked. "Do you have any idea what's going on?"

"We do have parts of a theory." Fox told him. "In our travels, we have encountered forms of teleportation powered by some form of mystical energy. Considering that nothing is left of the base, and some other odd factors, it seems that this is a good starting point for closer investigation."

"Here's what we've found. There is a bush growing in a spot previously covered by the base. It is pretty far along in its growth- what did you say, Peppy?" Slippy asked.

"I looked up the type of bush, and it would be at least half a year old to be that size." Peppy stated.

"Right. So either something caused excessive growth or... something else is at play. Moving on from that, there is no radiation at the site. None whatsoever. The rest of the planet all has some low background radiation, as you told us before, but there's absolutely nothing there."

"That doesn't make sense." Jared frowned. "Although I'd love to look into that further. I want to know why, and if I can harness that in any way to clean up the rest of the planet."

"Thirdly, we found this." Falco spoke up, pushing the carved stone forward. "It's clearly not natural, but we have no idea where it could have come from."

Colin picked up the stone and studied it, a puzzled expression on his face. "I've seen patterns like this before," he said. "Back when I was still studying at the Cornerian University." Recollection flashed in his eyes. "They had something to do with ruins, ancient civilizations around the Lylat System."

"I remember learning about that. The Lost Tribe of Cornerus." Peppy said. "Do you think..."

"I believe it's a strong possibility." Colin handed the stone to Jared. "Do you think you could study this further?" He asked.

"Sure. I'll run some scans, see if there's any form of energy connected to it." The possum peered at the stone through his glasses. "Slippy, would you like to help me?"

"You bet!" The frog said enthusiastically.

"I'll contact some experts," Peppy said. "I know a few archaeologists who may know something about this."

"That seems to just about cover what we can do at the moment. Would any of you mind if some of us went out for some practice flying?" Fox looked around. "I'd like to teach Krystal a few tricks."

"Not at all," Peppy said. "We have all the bases covered for the moment."

"I'll join you guys," Falco offered. "I'm not much use when it comes to research."

"Well done, Star Fox." Colin said. "It appears we may be getting some answers after all."


	8. Chapter 8

**Above an unnamed island.**

"Colin's nervous about something." Krystal said. She was following Fox closely as he coached her through some advanced maneuvers. "But he seems like he's concerned about our well-being. I can't understand it."

"I don't know what to think about it either." Fox eased his Arwing into a dive. "Alright, this move is good for dealing with ground targets." He fired his laser cannons into the dirt to emphasize his point, the superheated shots scorching the ground. "To give yourself more time to do damage, you want to stay steady as long as possible and pull out of the dive as late as you safely can. One advantage of our G-diffusers is the ability to quickly change direction. So hit the brakes, pull back, and then boost out of the dive."

He did so, using the reduced speed to give him enough time to change his pitch before boosting away from the ground. He turned to watch as Krystal tried the move, braking a little early.

"Not bad, but you could've waited a little longer. You definitely could have done some damage in the meantime, though."

"Got it." Krystal pulled her Arwing in a large loop and tried again. This time she waited longer before executing the maneuver. "How was that?"

"Much better." Fox nodded approvingly. Suddenly, a blaze of light flashed against the side of his ship. "Wh-"

"Watch it, Foxy!" Falco's Arwing sped past. "Up for a dogfight?"

Fox grinned, accepting the bird's challenge. "You bet." He flipped a switch, reducing the power of his lasers to a level easily handled by the deflector shields, and sped after Falco.

"Hey Krystal, Fox may have been showing you some tricks, but watch these moves!" Falco pulled back, shooting straight up into the sky.

"You show-off. What are you doing?" Fox asked as he cautiously followed.

"You'll see." Falco replied cheerfully. The ace pilot suddenly cut power to the engine, flipping around until he was pointing directly at Fox. He reactivated the engine and sped straight down, firing rapidly.

"Whoa!" Fox veered away, a few harmless bolts deflecting off the shields as he changed course. "Where'd you pick up that trick?

"It's an old piloting move. Comes from back when ships had weaker engines. It's called stalling." Falco pulled out of the dive and swept towards Fox.

"You gotta teach me that." Fox dropped altitude, skimming the ground. He waited until Falco followed suit before executing an Immelmann turn. Falco did the same, but Fox quickly followed up with a loop, placing him behind the bird.

"Where-" Falco left the turn and looked around, having lost sight of Fox during the maneuver. Low power bolts flashed off his rear shields. "Damn!" He quickly spun in a barrel roll, deflecting some of Fox's shots.

"Gotcha!" Fox grinned and pulled up alongside his friend. "Call it a draw?"

"Bah, fine. That was some smooth flying there."

"Same to you."

Krystal joined the two others in formation as they returned to Base Echo. "That was impressive, both of you."

"Heh. Thanks." Falco grinned. "This is what I live for. Not so much solving mysteries about vanishing crap."

"So one key thing to keep in mind during a dogfight is to be unpredictable." Fox told Krystal. "Falco's stalling maneuver was a great example of that, although it seemed like a risky move."

"Well, it definitely took some skill to pull off."

"Subverting your rival's expectations is also a good way to get the upper hand." Fox continued. "Falco assumed I'd be in front of him after he turned around, and usually, he'd be right. But by adding an extra loop to the Immelmann turn, I put myself in a position to attack."

"That's another thing to keep in mind." Falco added. "The real challenge of a dogfight is to get into that position and maintain it."

"I'll keep it in mind." Krystal smiled. "Thank you both for teaching me. I appreciate it."

"You're part of the team." Falco shrugged. "We work together. Of course we're gonna teach you."

 **Elsewhere**

The grey expanse stretched on forever, broken only by a small pink and white ship containing one angry occupant.

Katt sheathed and unsheathed her claws in irritation. Patience was not one of her strong suits. How long had it been? She had been flying over the waters of Zoness, returning from scouting at Base Delta's location, when her ship had suddenly been bathed in a jade light. She must have lost consciousness, because the next thing she knew, she was waking up in... wherever she was.

Frustrated, she tried to start the _Cat's Paw_ once more. Nothing happened, just like the last twenty attempts.

Where was Kool? He had been flying directly behind her. Was he okay? What had happened to him? Was he here as well? She looked out the cockpit again. Still nothing. That's all there ever was.

The _Cat's Paw_ continued to drift.

 **Base Echo laboratory**

"You guys have amazing equipment!" Slippy exclaimed, taking a closer look at a centrifuge. "How are you so well stocked? I wouldn't imagine that there's a whole lot of funding for this, at least not enough to get this kind of stuff."

"There isn't. A majority of this equipment is my own." He tapped a row of test tubes in their stand. "This is basically the extent of our funding. The containers and the Bunsen burners."

"You own all this?" Slippy asked, examining a Soxhlet extractor. "I'm impressed."

"I don't do much outside of my experimentation. When I'm not eating or sleeping, I'm working on chemistry projects." He set the mysterious carved stone on a table and began to rummage around for something. "Where did I..." he muttered.

"I don't mean to be rude, but how did you afford all of this?" Slippy wandered around the lab, looking at the various machines.

"I have many patents. One of my most lucrative is an extremely efficient hydrogenation process that synthesizes hydrogen from water. In fact, your Arwings use hydrogen fuel, correct? It's likely those fuel cells were created using my process." Jared crouched down and began searching in a cabinet under the counter.

"Incredible. Why haven't I heard about you before?"

"I prefer to keep a low profile." He found what he was looking for and stood up holding a small machine. He patted his pocket and frowned. "What happened to the..."

"The stone? You put it on the counter." Slippy pointed.

"Right, right." Jared said absently and picked it up. He pointed the machine at it and pressed a button, causing it to emit a small beep. "Your father is Beltino, right? The research director?"

"Yeah, that's right. Do you know him?"

"We've worked together a few times." Jared adjusted a knob with a frown, studying a small display on the side of the device. "A great scientist." He seemed to be satisfied with what he was looking at and set the machine down, writing something on a scrap of paper. "There are a lot of positively charged ions in this stone. More than there should be. This could indicate some sort of energy was discharged from it at some point in time."

"Do you think that it could have caused a warp?" Slippy asked.

"Based on the amount of energy needed for teleportation technology, no. This rock alone could not have done much. It's possible that this form of teleportation uses less energy than what we have developed, however. Or as an alternative, there was more than just this rock teleporting things. That would make the most sense, considering that the others-" he cut himself off.

Slippy didn't seem to notice. "That sounds reasonable. Do you know about the Goras on Titania?"

"I've heard of it, but I don't know much about it, no."

"The Goras are a sort of planetary defense system created by the ancient people living there, back before it was struck by a meteor and turned into a desert. They were once controlled through the temples that they built, although how this was done nobody knows for sure. I, er, met one of them firsthand. Two of them, actually." He shuddered. "Anyway, the temples somehow controlled these creatures, so it may be that something similar is taking place here. Temples or artifacts caused the base to teleport."

"Based on what I could discern from the stone, that's a very reasonable deduction." Jared said. "But here's the real question. Where are these teleported things going?"

 **Zoness**

 **Bridge of the Great Fox**

Peppy sighed deeply and sat back in his chair. He had sent a message to everyone he knew with a knowledge of the ancient civilizations of the Lylat System. Now all he could do was wait.

Despite his numerous vows to retire, he had left the team for no more than two weeks before returning. Life on Corneria just couldn't compare to living amongst the stars. His daughter was busy with teaching on Fichina, and he just found everything was too simple. He couldn't bring himself to leave the team, but he didn't feel like much of a help to them either.

"I'm just a sentimental old fool," he muttered to himself. "I miss the old days." He turned to ROB. "Guess I've just sort of run my course, eh?"

The robot turned and looked at him blankly.

"Ah, listen to me, talking to a machine." Peppy grumbled.

"Peppy." ROB stated. The rabbit looked up. "Your guidance is of great strategic value to the team. Without it, the chance of a successful mission drops by an average of 38.7 percent."

Peppy stared at ROB momentarily, surprised. "Where did this come from?" He asked.

"Software patch 1.6.43. Added appraisals of a team member's skills when feelings of inadequacy are detected."

"Slippy's been busy, huh?" Peppy chuckled. "I suppose I just miss flying alongside James." His expression grew distant. "He and I had some great moments together. I remember once we were pursuing a group of outlaws through Meteo when I was ambushed by, oh, seven or eight fighters. They popped out from behind a massive asteroid and began chasing me. I called for help, and within five seconds James had shot down each and every one of them." He smiled. "And now look at Fox. He's every bit as good a pilot as his father was."

ROB's processor whirred quietly.

"In a way, I've done what I set out to do." Peppy went on. "Fox has become what James wanted him to be. And I couldn't be prouder." He looked out the window as Solar set in the distance. "But I still can't just leave this behind."

"Nobody's expecting you to."

Peppy jumped in surprise and spun around. Falco was leaning against the doorway. "The team might be able to function without you. That much is true. But right now? We're operating smoothly. A finely tuned engine. And a lot of it is due to your guidance."

"I don't think I've ever heard you speak like this, Falco."

The bird shrugged. "That's because I don't. But I heard you spilling your feelings to the tin can, and thought 'What the hell. Why not.'" He grinned. "You guys are my family. And I don't feel that way about many people."

"Falco... I'm touched."

"Don't be. I'm just speaking the truth. If you want to retire, go for it. If you'd rather stay with us, well, I think I'd prefer that. In the end, though, it's up to you." He turned to leave. "One more thing. I'm flying solo again if you mention any of this to the rest of the team. I got a reputation to uphold."

Peppy chuckled. "My lips are sealed."


	9. Chapter 9

**Two hours later**

 **Base Echo conference room**

"Here's what we've determined." Jared stated, looking at his clipboard. "Some form of mystical teleportation seems like the culprit. The stone that Falco found showed signs of being used to store energy, and more importantly, give it off in some way." He flipped a page. "However, the estimated energy capacity of the stone, which seems to be stored in an unidentifiable jade-like mineral in the center, is not nearly enough for a warp the size of the base. I have contacted a geologist, and he is on his way to Zoness to examine this rock more thoroughly. Perhaps he knows something about whatever the mineral in the center is."

"There are a few possibilities explaining the low amount of power," Slippy continued. "Either this form of teleportation requires less energy than forms we know of, which seems unlikely. The other much more likely theory is that there are more than just this single stone."

"I'd like to expand on that, Slippy." Peppy said. "One of my archaeologist contacts got back to me, saying that many ancient ruins he's looked at had some sort of purpose behind them. After explaining the scenario, he believes that there may be an entire set of ruins somewhere that is causing this."

"Why would ancient tribes have built it, though?" Slippy asked. "And what exactly do they do?"

"An excellent question." Fox put forth. "And I think it's time we get some answers. First, we should look for more ruins. I think it's likely that they will be underwater since we would know about them if they were visible above ground. Slippy, is the Blue Marine still serviceable? We haven't used her in years."

"We can get her transmitted to the Great Fox and ready for use soon." Slippy replied. "It's a good thing I fitted her with a transfer device. I'll contact the Space Dynamics storage facility and have them send it."

"That old thing?" Falco asked. "We still have it?"

Slippy glared at him. "Hey, I built it, and I'm proud of it. A while after you left, we sold her to Space Dynamics so they could rent it out as needed. We weren't using it too frequently after all, and nobody really wanted to buy an attack submarine. There's not a huge demand for that. After the Sauria crisis, I was able to purchase it again, but fitted it with a long-range transmitter so we no longer needed to have it on board the Great Fox taking up hangar space. They store it for us."

Falco shrugged noncommittally. "News to me. I ain't getting in it at any rate. Not my thing."

"You don't need to. I'll drive it." Slippy volunteered. "If that's okay with you, Fox."

"Sure thing." Fox said. "We'll go to Base Delta and search the waters nearby."

"Fox, what if this happens again?" Krystal asked. "Who's to say that the warp won't trigger a second time?" She stopped momentarily, seeming distracted. "Or has it?" She asked softly, looking at Colin.

All eyes fell upon the bulldog, who looked rather panicked.

"We should tell them, Colin. I told you." Jared said pointedly. Colin nodded wordlessly. "...guess it's up to me then. You guys aren't the first people we've had investigate."

"You mean...?" Fox trailed off.

"Yeah. They vanished too." Jared sighed heavily and sat down. "You're our fourth group. We first hired a freelance pilot. A mutt. Didn't really have much experience with this kind of thing, but he was eager to prove himself, I suppose. He vanished."

"We weren't sure what to do." Colin seemed to have found his voice. At first I thought we should just leave it at that. But there was still the hope everyone was alive. So we put out a new contract. Two cats answered the call next. A male and female."

At this, Falco shot upright. "Two cats? What were their names? What did they look like?"

"One was Kool, the other was named, simply enough, Katt. They were blue and pink, respectively."

"Dammit!" Falco growled. "I told her to stay out of trouble!"

"One of those must be Katt Monroe." Fox explained to Colin and Jared. "She and Falco go way back." Not for the first time, Fox wondered about their relationship.

"Well, they vanished as well. Both of them at the same time." Colin shook his head. "That's not the worst of it. The next group we called in... you have to understand, we were getting desperate."

"We sent out a request in a less-than-reputable listing site." Jared picked up the story. "And Star Wolf accepted it."

"I know, they're criminals. But please understand. We had lost three pilots and an entire base. We had no idea where to turn and-"

"We understand." Krystal interrupted him. "In fact, we worked alongside Star Wolf during the Aparoid Invasion. They may be criminals, but they do have hearts."

"I'm glad you understand." Colin looked relieved. "Anyway, their leader, Wolf, vanished while they were scouting. The panther initially wanted to cut their losses and leave, but the lizard wouldn't let him. They went back out, but soon vanished as well. Six pilots, all of them gone."

"That's when we contacted you." Jared continued. "I wanted to tell you about the previous pilots, but Colin was worried that you may not take the job if you knew."

"With all due respect, Mr. Davis, that was a poor decision." Fox gently reprimanded him. "We would have stayed, and there could be information we could gain from this."

"I know." Colin hung his head. "I'm sorry. I just-"

"You were scared. And when you're scared, you don't always make the best decisions. It's understandable." Krystal said. "We aren't leaving. We're going to fix this."

"So, the teleport has happened several times now? That complicates things." Fox rubbed his chin. "I'm not so sure now we should search for the ruins directly."

"Perhaps an unmanned vessel then?" Slippy suggested. "I could modify the Blue Marine, make it operated remotely."

"That would be great." Fox told him. "Get the sub transferred and start working on that."

"Fox?" Krystal asked. "What will we do once we find the ruins?"

"I...l don't really know." Fox admitted. "I suppose our best course of action is to research and understand them. Perhaps we can figure out some way to reverse the process, or at least find out where they went."

"I'll work on contacting more experts. I'm sure we can find someone in the Lylat System who knows something about this sort of thing." Jared offered. "Peppy, you said you had an archaeologist contacted?"

"Yep. I'll see if he can come here."

"Okay. While I've never heard of any research into this magic energy, I'll ask around to see if anyone knows anything about it. I know many people within the scientific community, and if there is any sort of study of it, I'm sure someone has heard."

"Alright then. I guess all we can do for now is gather more information." Fox stated. "Let's get to work!"


End file.
